Custer chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, Black Hills, D.T. [S.D.]) 1880-1890, 1887-07-30
THE SEA SERPENT.
Adirondack Murray Solves 1t with the
Aid OF n Good Field Glass.

Aid OF n Good Field Glass.
w. II. II. Murray has solved the sea
serpent mystery Of Lake Champlain, and
his solution will perhaps apply to many
along shore mysteries Of the same sort.
ic writes as follows
"Going TO my front door last Friday
morning | found many people, with more
or less excitement, looking at the lake.
l asked a canister opposite my door what
was the cause of it, lie replied that the
sea serpent was in the bay. ! said;
Have you seen hiln?' He replied that
lie had, and that it had only just sunk
from view, and would soon probably
rcappear. The words were hardly uttered
before he pointed frantically toward the
lake, and said: There he IS! There he isl
and sure enough right in front Of me, not
two miles away, the "A being scarcely
rippled, the air clear as plate glass, ! be
held the sea serpent, and | must say that
the spectacle was truly a most startling
one. In my wanderings | have Glanced
TO see some strange things md had cause
TO note some OF the deceits hat naturccan
practice on the senses, but | am free To
say that ! never saw on land or sea an ap.
pearance more startling than / saw in
Burlington bay in front Of my house last
A Iiddg lbOl IllIS. Liz appearance illS
been many times described with a fair
degree of accuracy. In length tie serEcnt
seemed ut least 100 feet longer than a canal
boat would at that distance. Its color
was at times Of a slaty brown, and at
others it seemed TO be glistening white,
like the scslcs Of a shad. It's motion was
undulatory, and a kind of quivering its
whole length characterized it. 1t moved
with astonishing rapidity toward the
north, end when it was showing the full
length Of its appearance it sank from
sight.
This Is q plain account OF the sen ser
pcnt as | saw it. The deceit was perfect.
The coolest observer and the most skepti-
cal would have been perfectly convinced
that his eyes had beheld a marine mon
stcr. | have a field glass Of great value,
and, thinking Tint the serpent wUuld ap-
pear again, | stepped quickly to where it
hangs in the hall and adjusted the lenses
for the distance. A lady's hand at the
acquired range would show it's fingers
plainly. The first thought of i%ncredulity,
as ! stood gazing Mt it before | took my
glass, arose from the fact of the exceeding
rapidity with which IL was moving. No
body, | said TO myself, could ever
move through the water as fast as that
thing was going. ] had hardly reached
the vcranda again when the cry rang along
the street, There he is! There he is
again. and, sure enough, there was The
serpent once more, white and shiny, NOV
ing with immense rapidity, with the same
peculiar vibrating motion. ! brought my
glass 10 bear upon ii instantly, and the
mystery was that instant solved. The
immense sea monster resolved itself into
several hundreds of small birds Of the
plovcr family, flying in a long line, which
swung down and 10 the right or left rs
tney few. The under side of their wings
and breasts was snowy white; their backs
were slaty brown. When In the
long or short curvings Of their fight,
they were flying at such M angle as re-
CARDS the CaZer that the under side of
their wings and breasts were seen, the
serpent, long and white, appeared. When
they tOok some slant at another angle,
n their backs and upper side of their
wings were turned toward the gazer, the
white line faded out and the monster
seemed to sink from view. The culver
ing and vibrating motions Of the monster
were thus explained. The quick fiutter
Of their little wings, in long line ex-
tended, the gradual swoop up and down
in their flight, made tie appearance per
feet. The immense speed Of the serpent
was accounted for, his motion being the
motion Of quick winged birds cleaving the
air, and not Of an aquatic monster rush
ing through the water.
"Tha this n true count and perfect
solution Of tho ~Champlain sea serpent the
public may believe, for ! lad not only the
opportunity TO sec one sea serpent that
morning, but ] saw three ut the same in
slant; one rounding Bluff Point, one
about n mile out heading to join it, and
another north Of Juniper Island; and so !
speak with the certainty Of one W no knows
whereof he affirms. But the appearance
is a most dcccitful one, and with the I'M
assisted eye its real nature cannot be dis
cerned.n